POLICE BEAT

Bangor man charged with trying to take bath salts into jail

BANGOR, Maine — Someone called police last week to say a local man was doing drugs and when officers went to check on him at his work, he locked himself in a room, Bangor police Sgt. Paul Edwards said Tuesday.

On Oct. 3, Christopher Pelkey, 23, “was in possession of bath salts and he took off,” Edwards said. Then Pelkey reportedly locked himself in a room that just happened to have a toilet. Police thought maybe he was trying to flush the drugs and the decision was made, with the assistance of Pelkey’s probation officer, to arrest him for violating his probation, the sergeant said.

When Pelkey got to Penobscot County Jail, intake officers “found a plastic bag with white powder on him” that was concealed in the small watch pocket of his jeans, Edwards said.

Police believe the powder is the synthetic drug bath salts, which was banned in Maine in July and outlawed by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency last Friday.

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Pelkey was charged with unlawful possession of synthetic hallucinogenic drugs and felony trafficking in prison contraband for the drugs found on him at the jail.